Jacob Day’s Three Minute Thesis
BTS, a Water Soluble, Slow Releasing Sulfur Dioxide Donor
Sulfur dioxide (SO2) has long been considered a toxic environmental pollutant and byproduct of industrial processing. Recently it has become evident that SO2 may also have regulatory functions in mammalian pulmonary systems. However, the study of these effects has proven to be challenging due to the difficulty in administering SO2 in a reliable manner. In this work, we report the discovery of a new pH-dependent and water-soluble SO2 donor, benzothiazole sulfinate (BTS). We have found BTS to have slow and sustained SO2 release at physiological pH. Additionally, we have explored its vasorelaxation properties as compared to the authentic SO2 gas solutions. The slow release of BTS should make it a useful tool for the study of endogenously generated SO2.
Jacob is a third year graduate student in the Chemistry Department hailing from Green Bay, Wisconsin. He obtained his bachelors degree from St. Norbert College with a B.S. in biochemistry in the Spring of 2013. He started his pursuit of a doctorate at WSU the fall of 2014. Since then, he has been working in Dr. Ming Xian’s group where they study the chemical biology of reactive sulfur species (RSS). Specifically, his work concerns the development of sulfur dioxide (SO2) donors to better understand the relationship between sulfur dioxide and heart disease. His goal is to become a research professor at the junction between chemistry and biology.